In Repair
by Merilindir
Summary: They're all so broken, but Kakashi has a foolish hope that they won't always be.


These two passages were going to go at the beginning and end of a long fic but honestly? I don't have time to write that, and I think they can stand alone as they are.

(Title comes form In Repair by John Mayer)

* * *

Naruto is broken. The sunny blond hair and disposition only mask crippling loneliness. A young boy wants to be village leader so that the village will acknowledge his existence beyond 'demon brat'. Naruto was orphaned the day he was born and he doesn't know how or why. He eats ramen by the cupful because it's damn near the only thing he can afford and Ichiraku's is the only place that will serve him. (And because he loves it, and how can there be too much of a good thing when it's the only good thing he's got?)

Sasuke is broken. He is grieving, and sad, and confused, and so, so, _angry._ His entire world was shattered on the whims of the person he loved most. His heart is hardened and in tatters and guarded by walls taller than he is. He is in desperate need of love but he cannot give it, cannot receive it. Physically he's a young, whole, and talented shinobi, but emotionally he's barren.

Sakura is broken. She is weak, she is unimportant. She puts too much time into her appearance because everyone she's ever met has told her that the way she is is unacceptable. She executes punches with textbook precision but there's no force behind them. Her chakra control is good- superb, even- but no one's ever encouraged her to make use of it. The only friendship she's ever had was ruined because of a boy that is emotionally incapable of returning her feelings. She bows to rules and authority because they're so much more dependable than her shattered self-confidence.

Kakashi is broken. He's been broken for so long that he thinks he must have been made that way. Almost everyone he's ever cared about is dead (Father, Obito, Rin, Minato-Sensei) or a traitor (Itachi). The handsome young man hasn't properly looked in a mirror since he was seven because the only thing his reflection shows is _guilt_ and _failure_ and _father._ He's worn masks for so long, masks upon masks until he's not sure if there's anything inside the protective casing. He stands in front of a memorial stone for hours and forgets to live.

They are a broken team of broken people, and he hopes (as foolish as he knows it is) that someday, their broken pieces will fit together and make them whole.

* * *

Naruto is Hokage. He is a hero, and everyone who once called him demon now loves him. He's made his own family of friends to ease the pain of having lost one before he had a chance to even know it. He makes kage bunshin by the dozens to roam all over Konoha so that everyone can have a helping hand if they need it. He eats bowls upon bowls of ramen because it tastes like _home_ and _family_. Naruto is whole.

Sasuke has come back to the village. He's learned the truth; every last bitter piece of it. His hate and his lust for vengeance have been sated or diminished. Every day he thinks about his older brother that he can't find it in himself to hate anymore. His heart is slowly piecing itself together and the walls that guard it are let down for a few precious people. Sasuke is whole.

Sakura is a living legend. She is the the best damn medic the world has ever seen. She has leveled battlefields with her fists alone. She flinches from nothing and no one. Sakura is whole.

Kakashi is still late for nearly everything. He still reads porn in inappropriate places. He still spends time at the Memorial Stone, but he never forgets to spend time with his precious living people. He no longer avoids mirrors because he no longer sees his father and failure in his reflection. He still wears a mask that everyone tries to see under. Time and three adorable genin have helped stitch his bleeding heart back together. Kakashi is whole.

Kakashi remembers a foolish, selfish hope. Remembers holding on to it stubbornly, refusing to let one more thing he cares about go.

They are _whole._


End file.
